cautiously landed behind some big rocks, and quickly
removing our boots my hunter and I were soon on shore and noiselessly
peering through the brush to the place where we had last seen the bear;
but he had disappeared.

The wind was favorable, and we knew that he had not been alarmed. It
took us some time to hit off his trail, for he had wandered in all
directions before leaving this place; but after it was once found, his
footprints in the thick moss made tracking easy, and we moved rapidly
on. We had not expected a long stalk, and our feet were badly punished
by the devil clubs which were here most abundant. We could see by the
tracks that the bear had not been alarmed, and knew that we should soon
come up with him. After a mile or so the trail led in the direction of a
low marsh where the coast line makes a big bend inward, so apparently we
had crossed a long point into a bay beyond.

I at once felt sure that the bear was near, having probably come to this
beach to feed, and as Nikolai looked at me and smiled I knew he, too,
felt that we were on a warm trail.

We had just begun to descend toward the shore when I thought I heard a
slight noise ahead. Keeping my eyes fixed in that direction, I
whispered to Nikolai, who was standing a few feet in front of me,
intently peering to the right. Suddenly I caught just a glimpse of a
tawny, brownish bit of color through the brush a short distance
ahead. Quickly raising my rifle I had just a chance for a snap shot, and
the next instant a large hear made a dash through some thick
underbrush. It was but an indistinct glimpse which I had had, and before
I could throw another cartridge into the barrel of my rifle the bear was
out of sight. Keeping my eyes moving at about the rate of speed I
judged he was going, I fired again through the trees, and at once a deep
and angry growl told me that my bullet had gone home.

Then we raced ahead, my hunter going to the left while I entered the
thick brush into which the bear had disappeared. I had gone but a short
distance when I heard Nikolai shoot three times in rapid succession, and
as quickly as I could break through I hurried in his direction. It
seemed that as we separated, Nikolai had at once caught sight of the
bear slowly making away. He immediately fired but missed; at the report
of his rifle the bear turned and came toward him, but was too badly
wounded by my first two shots to be dangerous. At close range Nikolai
fired two m